Anatomy
by Iruka Sensei871
Summary: When Cecil has stomach problems, Carlos finds out how different Night Vale citizens really are. I don't own Welcom to Night Vale, nor will I make any money off this fic. Warnings for MPreg. Also, very sad. Rated for adult themes and heavy subject material


Carlos carefully measured chemicals and then put them in a test tube with a dropper. One, two, three red drops fell slowly. He loved measuring and using droppers and beakers. Scientific equipment was so clean and useful. The small lab he'd built in the second bedroom was his favorite place to be.

"Carlos?" he heard from the bedroom, but he ignored Cecil. _Just a few more minutes,_ he thought. He knew what Cecil wanted, but they had just made love the night before, and he could wait a bit. Not that he didn't enjoy being with Cecil, but science had its own rewards.

He needed this data. If he was right he was about to learn something big, something incredibly interesting.

"Carlos?" he heard again, and with a start he realized it had been half an hour.

"Sorry babe. Be right there."

Cecil wasn't in the bedroom, and Carlos found him in the bathroom, kneeling over the toilet.

Carlos rubbed his back while Cecil vomited. "Feeling bad again?" he asked.

"Yeah," Cecil said thickly. "Could you get me some medicine?"

Carlos looked through the medicine cabinet, finally settling on some Pepto. He wasn't sure if it was what Cecil needed, but it was all they had.

Cecil took the medicine and sat back against the cabinet, gagging but keeping back the vomit. He was paler than usual, and his third eye drooped. He chugged the Pepto directly from the bottle.

"I can call the station and tell the intern to take over," Carlos said. "Who is it this week?"

"We didn't replace Andy yet," Cecil said. "I'll be fine. I have an hour before I need to leave."

He stood and walked to the bed, holding his stomach. He belched and lay back. "Carlos, do you use birth control?"

"Do I what now?" Carlos asked.

"Birth control. I guess I shouldn't have assumed."

Carlos stammered. "I know things work differently in Night Vale, but…um…wow."

Cecil sat up and sighed. "I should have been more careful. Do you want children?"

"I've never thought about it," Carlos said, "but it shouldn't be a problem. I mean, do men get pregnant here?"

"What kind of question is that?" Cecil asked. "Of course we do. Don't you know basic anatomy?"

Carlos had learned long ago not to point out Night Vale's oddness. It upset Cecil, and he hated seeing his beloved unhappy.

"Sure," he said. "I'm just surprised."

Cecil dressed slowly and left for work, kissing Carlos briefly on the way out. His usual demeanor was suppressed.

Carlos went back to his lab and tried to focus on his work, but he found himself measuring inexactly, and he gave up and sat down in the living room to think.

He liked this apartment, partly because it was orderly and comfortable, and partly because Cecil had made it his home. He loved seeing the little touches Cecil had added, the abstract statue on the coffee table, the miniature bloodstone, the hand cross stitch that said, "I don't believe in mountains." It all said Cecil on it, and he couldn't imagine a life without him.

How could he bring up an abortion? Was that even a thing in Night Vale? Would Cecil leave him? He couldn't have a child. Or could he?

He imagined a young boy, with dark hair and skin like his own, but with tentacles and an adorable third eye like Cecil. He could picture himself teaching him how to work in the lab, getting him a special stool so he could see over the counter. He could picture Cecil teaching him how to cook, with both of them wearing matching aprons.

The thought made him smile, but he was being premature. Cecil might not even be pregnant. He couldn't even believe he was supporting the idea. Men didn't get pregnant. Cecil probably just had an ulcer or something.

But he went to the pharmacy and bought a pregnancy test, just in case. Cecil had been having stomach problems for the last month, but Carlos hadn't thought much about it. They hadn't been severe until that morning, and as excitable as Cecil was Carlos had assumed he was being overdramatic before that bizarre question.

The cashier beamed at him. "For you or Cecil?" she asked.

"Huh?" Carlos asked, pulled out of his reverie. He didn't know the girl, but everyone who knew Cecil, and that was most of the town, knew his famous scientist boyfriend.

Carlos blushed, unaware of how much more attractive it made him. "Oh, uh, it's for Cecil, but don't say anything to anyone, ok?"

She nodded and beamed at him. "I hope it's good news."

He wondered which response would be good news.

He managed to lose himself in his work, and when he heard the front door shut his heart jumped. Cecil had a bruise across his face.

"Rough day at work?" Carlos asked.

"Replaced the intern," Cecil said. He plopped down on the couch and lay back with his legs hanging over the end. "Lost the new intern."

"I'm so sorry," Carlos said.

"He was a good kid," Cecil said, "slow though."

Carlos fetched a beer, and without thinking grabbed on for Cecil.

Cecil shook his head. "Just in case," he said smiling and patting his stomach. Carlos eyed him critically. He wasn't showing at any rate.

"I got you something," Carlos said. He handed Cecil the pregnancy test. Cecil held it and looked at it quietly.

"I suppose we should find out," Cecil said.

"I want to know," Carlos said. "Don't you?"

"Yes," Cecil said, "and no. I'm not sure. I never thought about having children."

"Do you want children?" Carlos asked.

"With you," Cecil said. "I would have said no before, but I love the idea of having your child. What about you?"

"I think I'd like that," Carlos said. "We could raise him to be a scientist."

"Or a radio announcer," Cecil said quickly.

"What about a radio announcer that's a scientist?" Carlos asked, smiling.

"I love that idea," Cecil said. "What about a name?"

"I love the name Gershwin," Carlos said.

"Carlos Gershwin?" Cecil asked. "I like it. What if it's a girl though?"

"I don't know," Carlos said.

"What about Tamika?" Cecil asked. "Or Janice?"

"Two strong young women," Carlos said. "I like them both."

Cecil looked at the pregnancy test. "I'll do this later. It's been a rough day. Had a run in with station management. Barely escaped alive."

"You rest then," Carlos said. "I need to run an errand."

He knew exactly where to go, and he found Tamika at the training grounds. She was sitting on a stump reading A Tale of Two Cities, and she smiled and waved when she saw him.

"Hi Carlos!" she yelled, putting the book in her backpack.

"I need to go to the library," he said.

Tamika's jaw dropped. "You? But you aren't even armed."

"I was hoping you'd take me," Carlos said.

Tamika nodded seriously. "It's only an hour before dark. We need to go now." She strapped on a long sword and several daggers.

Carlos followed her to the front door of the library, and the hair on his neck stood up. He had to force himself to step into the lobby, and when Tamika moved quickly to the side and flattened herself against the wall he followed her.

"Stay in the shadows," she whispered, "and if we get attacked, try to hide. Run for the entrance as soon as you can. Don't worry about me. I can take care of myself."

She led him in a circuitous route to the card catalogue. A librarian stood before them, facing the other way. Carlos' mouth went dry. From the back he could only see that it was a tall creature with long talons.

Tamika put her hand on Carlos' arm, and he stayed as still as possible until the librarian moved on.

"What book do you need?" Tamika asked.

"Basic Anatomy," Carlos said. "I have a hunch that I'll find what I need in there."

"Keep watch," Tamika said. She flipped through the catalogue quickly and found what she needed.

"Stay low," she whispered, leading Carlos through the library. They had to hide between the stacks twice as librarians moved about their mysterious business, but they found the book. They made their way to the circulation desk. The librarian there looked at them but made no movement.

"They don't attack while we check out books," Tamika said. She handed the librarian the book, and Carlos handed it his library card. His hand shook, but the librarian reached out and took the card with its long talons. Carlos glimpsed just a bit of the place a face should have been, and his knees shook.

The librarian handed him the book and his card, and they turned toward the door. Two librarians had snuck behind them, almost blocking their escape.

"Run!" Tamika yelled, and they fled the library. Carlos was close behind her, He heard the librarian close behind, but he didn't dare look behind him. He felt sour breath on his neck.

As the door opened and let them out into the dry desert air Carlos felt something sharp dig into his back, tearing through his lab coat and into his skin.

He screamed as he was pulled backwards into the library, but Tamika grabbed him around the legs and with strength that was astounding for a 14 year old pulled him out of the librarian's grasp and out onto the concrete in front of the building. The librarian tried to follow, but it hit the protection wards and turned back with a screech.

Carlos was stunned. Tamika knelt by him. "Carlos? Carlos can you hear me?"

"Yes," he said. "I thought it got me."

"It did," Tamika said. "Roll over. I need to look at the wound."

Carlos rolled onto his stomach, and Tamika cut his shirt open. "Good," she said. "It only scratched you. If it had bitten you we'd have a real problem. Their bites are poisonous."

She pulled a first aid kit out of her backpack and put salve and a bandage on Carlos' back. When he stood he felt the air on his back through his torn shirt.

"Make sure you have it back before 14 days," Tamika said. "You don't want to know what happens after 14 days."

Carlos looked at the library, dark and brooding against the twilight. He could see three librarians in the lobby, hands reaching out toward him as they fumed inside.

"I'll make sure to get it back," he said. "I'm not looking forward to going back in there."

"Oh, there's an outside deposit box," Tamika said. "Just watch your hands when you put it in. Sometimes the librarians like to grab arms through the slit, and they can pull a hand off at the wrist."

Carlos hid the book under his arm so that Night Vale citizens wouldn't see it. He didn't know why they accepted him as one of their own so easily, but letting them see him with a book might remind him that he wasn't originally from Night Vale.

Cecil was sleeping on the couch when he got home, and Carlos stopped for a moment to watch him sleeping, snoring lightly. Carlos wanted to brush back his hair, but he passed by and changed his shirt and coat, hiding the torn and bloodied clothes so he wouldn't bother Cecil.

He cooked a simple pasta meal and woke Cecil. After a leisurely meal with no deep conversation Carlos retired to his small home lab to read the book.

He flipped to the chapter on reproductive organs and found what he'd feared. Most Night Vale citizens appeared to be human. Cecil had assumed that their oddities were the result of mutation, which he'd been researching, but now he learned the truth. They weren't human. They were all hermaphrodites as well. The men absorbed semen through the intestines, where it went to the uterus. Carlos read, fascinated. Babies were born through the rectum after nine months.

Cecil shut the door and stared at the wall. His life suddenly made less sense than usual. He imagined having a baby with an inhuman…what? He couldn't think of Cecil as a monster, but what else could he be?

He remembered the first time he'd seen Cecil, and the fear he'd felt at the tentacles and that blinking third eye. Those strong tattooed arms and those gorgeous eyes hadn't escaped his attention, but when he realized that Cecil was romantically interested in him he'd been afraid, especially when Cecil began to pursue him.

It was when he'd finally realized that he wanted to hear that smooth, sonorous voice that he gave in to the attraction that had been building between them. That night at the Arby's he had known that Cecil was no monster, just an amazing and desirable man.

He watched Cecil washing dishes happily, whistling to himself.

"So what are you doing tomorrow?" Cecil asked.

"Oh, science," Carlos said. "You?"

"I thought we could go down to the Ralph's and sign the baby register."

Carlos couldn't say anything for a minute. "It was positive."

Cecil nodded happily and hugged him. "You're going to be a father."

"I'm going to be a father," Carlos said. "I can't believe it. It's wonderful!"

He held Cecil that night, listening to him mumble in his sleep and running his hand over his stomach.

The next day they went to the Ralph's together and signed the register, and then they went to city hall and signed the official pregnancy announcement.

As the day went on and Carlos got more and more congratulations he began to feel more excited. _This is really going to happen,_ he thought.

Over the next two weeks Carlos read the anatomy book from cover to cover, and when he returned the book he got Tamika to take him back in to find books on pregnancy. They escaped without any difficulties, and he read voraciously.

Cecil began to have cravings, and Carlos brought him ice cream and blood pudding.

The day the wyrms attacked was a rough one for the entire town, and Carlos couldn't find Cecil. He usually trusted Cecil to protect himself; he was good at it. That was before he was carrying his child though, and Carlos searched all over town. He finally found him at city hall trying to interview one of the city council.

The city council gave a howling statement that Carlos didn't understand, but he knew that Cecil spoke whatever odd language they used.

A wyrm materialized on the steps of city hall, and as Carlos watched helplessly it swung its giant tail and hit Cecil and the council member. The council member tumbled and ran, but the tail caught Cecil squarely in the stomach and flung him 10 feet, where he landed and lay still.

"Cecil!" Carlos screamed, and he charged forward, running around the great wyrm, which was busy screaming its harsh bellow at the secret police, who battled it bravely and without regard for their own safety.

Carlos grabbed Cecil by the shoulders and pulled him away from city hall until he was able to hide behind a large boulder.

"Cecil?" he asked. "Are you ok?"

"I'm not sure," Cecil said. "I mean, I'm ok, but I'm not sure about the baby."

"Ok. It's ok," Carlos said. "Where are you parked? I'll get the car and take you to the hospital."

Cecil stood unsteadily, and they walked to his car. He sat in the passenger seat.

"It doesn't hurt much," he said. "I'm sure there isn't a problem."

Carlos threw the car in gear. "You're right," he said. "They'll probably tell us everything is fine."

The rest of the ride was silent, with Carlos focused on driving as fast as he could through the narrow streets, and Cecil holding his stomach with a faraway look on his face. When they hit a bump Cecil winced, and Carlos knew he was in more pain than he would admit.

Carlos paced in the waiting room, joined eventually by Old Woman Josie and two of her angelic friends, Mayor Dana, and Steve Carlsberg. Various friends came and went, asking about Cecil and offering support to Carlos.

Two hours later they told him he could see Cecil. When he went in he found Cecil lying pale and quiet. Cecil looked away when he entered, and Carlos knew what had happened.

"She was a girl," Cecil said quietly.

"I'm so sorry," Carlos said.

"They let me see her," Cecil said. "Three months along, but so beautiful. So tiny and delicate, and I didn't protect her."

"Don't think like that," Carlos said. "It isn't your fault."

"Can you find out when I can leave?" Cecil asked. "I want to go home."

"Yeah," Carlos said. "I want you home too."

It was a long drive, and Carlos was surprised that Cecil didn't once ask about the radio show.

"Do you want me to contact the station?" Carlos asked.

"You should probably do that," Cecil said listlessly.

They were exhausted enough to sleep heavily, but Carlos woke in the night to hear Cecil sobbing. He put his arm around Cecil and intertwined their fingers. "When you're ready – if you're ready, we can try again."

Cecil sighed and held Carlos' hand tightly. "It's enough that you're here right now."

Station management sent a bouquet of flowers to the apartment, with a note that Cecil could take as much time off as he needed. They had a new intern that could fill in.

It surprised Cecil. "I guess even they have a heart," he said.

A week later Carlos saw him at the kitchen table working on stories for the next day's broadcast, and he knew they would be ok. It would take time, but they would be ok.


End file.
